Carport to Coop Conversion in FL

[ghostriderphoto]

So far, we are truly enjoying this adventure. The flock consists of 30 ISA Brown, 10 White Leghorn, 10 Black Australorp and 5 Guinea fowl. They are happily growing up (quickly) in the garage where we devised an expandable brooder for them including a swing, a dome, a dust bath and food and water. I have a White Leghorn that absolutely LOVES taking her naps in a hand or on your chest. My boys both have their favorites and there is at least one guinea that likes to come out and have extra treats (this guinea has it figured out... lol).

The construction on the carport to coop conversion has not progressed at all and it is getting down to crunch time! These birds are going to be big and will need the extra space. I have a basic layout for the coop, but I am still looking for the right system for feed and water. I have 50 water nips I can put into a PVC system or what not, but I am stumped on the best feeding option for these guys. We are going to be battling invasions from coon, fox, owl, coyote, dogs, cats, mice, rats, snakes... bigfoot (just kidding... lol, I hope!). The entire coop will be either 2x4 and plywood or 2x4 and hardware cloth. A hardware cloth skirt will surround the entire coop.

After I get the coop built, I will start on the run that will be 6ft welded wire fence on T-posts. Electric fence will be surrounding the coop and the run with another wire going out to the perimeter fence of the property and making at least a top and bottom run there. All of this will be lit up like Christmas by a 120-mile fence charger and a few strategically placed led dusk to dawn parking lot lights.
We are going to do everything we can to keep these guys safe. We are trying to figure out where we are going to keep the feed and where we are going to have the compost pile, so we don't attract predators and pests to our babies.
Let us know if you have any suggestions!

 

[Debbie292d]

So cute!

You sure have great plans to keep them safe!

For feed storage, we have to keep spare bags in our basement and the ones in the coop in airtight bins. For the quantity you'll be needing, our bins that hold 30# would be too small. You'll most likely be buying feed in 50# bags. The farmer neighbor uses plastic garbage cans, but hers are huge, probably holding 100# of feed. Those aren't sealed though yet varmints can't get in them. The seal feature I just like to keep the food fresher, but if you're going through it in a week, that's fresh enough! She keeps hers right outside the door to the run.

For feeders, I would look into the PVC ports. Ours are on 5-gallon buckets and they work great. We've got 6 of them. You could use those on a bigger bucket.

 

[Sefirothe]

For food storage, a place I boarded a horse at once used defunct chest freezers. Kept rodents out very well and extended storage due to being air tight (as long as the gaskets were intact).

Lots of people look to get rid of them for free when they stop working. Maybe keep an eye out on your local groups on social media?

 

[ghostriderphoto]

Needless to say, progress has been extremely slow. By slow, I mean I have everything onsite for the job, but no real work completed yet. The babies pretty much have the brooder maxed out for size and they are keen to explore. When I clean their brooder or if I am just sitting out with them, I will pull the top screen back and let them come out and explore. We also try to get them out as much as possible in the double exercise pen I picked up just for them. We definitely don't want them getting bored and if they appear to be getting an attitude from boredom or whatnot, then they get to ride around with me as I do my chores. I want these birds to be happy, and we are trying to keep them entertained through enrichment as much as we can.

This next week will be exciting as I have some friends lined up to help us get construction done on the coop and run. I am very thankful for their time as my health has kept me from being able to work on this project. I will try to get some good pics for everyone.

Here is a question....
All around the bottom of the coop I am going to use metal roof panels. Will it be necessary to run hardware cloth behind these panels or will the panels provide enough protection on their own?

Thank you in advance!

 

[rosemarythyme]

All around the bottom of the coop I am going to use metal roof panels. Will it be necessary to run hardware cloth behind these panels or will the panels provide enough protection on their own?

The metal roof panels are going where on the bottom of the coop? As the floor? Under the floor? Around the base?

 

[ghostriderphoto]

The metal roof panels are going where on the bottom of the coop? As the floor? Under the floor? Around the base?

The roof panels will be on the base of the walls. One corner of the coop will be plywood where I am building an area I can keep the birds safe during severe weather.